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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Aberdeen City Council Meeting - November 24, 2025

City Council — Monday, November 24, 2025

BodyAberdeen, South Dakota

SessionCity Council

DateMonday, November 24, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 33:16

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

3:23

It's five thirty, so let's call to order this meeting for Monday, November twenty-fourth.

3:28

Jordan, would you start us off with a roll call?

3:30

Please respond by stating present.

3:31

Councilmember Ronane Foberg.

3:34

Present.

4:20

Well mark will be a hundred and nineteen thousand three hundred and thirty-four dollars, not a hundred and eleven.

4:26

Trav's outfitters will be seventeen thousand five hundred thirty-eight dollars and not one seventy-one five thirty-eight, just a decimal point there.

4:35

Glad we're not buying two hundred thousand dollars worth of boots.

4:44

Looks like that one's actually correct.

4:57

Six sixty-three.

5:01

That's correct.

5:02

Where decimal points go.

5:03

Yeah, just our excel error somewhere.

5:06

Okay.

5:07

So I take a motion to approve the agenda with those uh aforementioned notations on those invoices to be paid.

5:14

Move to approve with those corrections.

5:18

Got a motion from Councilman Ward, second from Councilman Nobstrop.

5:21

Anyone have any discussion points on our evening's agenda?

5:25

Okay, all in favor, please say aye.

5:28

Oppose nay.

5:30

Motion carries.

5:31

Next we've got approval of the minutes from the previous meeting, which took place one week ago last Monday, November 17th.

5:37

I take a motion to approve the minutes of our previous meeting.

5:40

So move.

5:41

Second.

5:42

Motion Nelson, second.

5:43

Econger, anyone have anything?

5:46

All in favor, please say aye.

5:47

Aye.

5:49

We have uh speaker here tonight, Lonnie Anderson from our uh who's uh civil engineer and property developer around here in Aberdeen.

5:58

Always good to see him.

5:59

He sent us all some correspondence on some some lights, and we were uh working a little bit back and forth to make sure that the neighborhoods in question are well lit and safe.

6:10

So Lonnie.

6:11

The floor is yours.

6:12

Welcome to the meeting.

6:13

Glad you're here.

6:15

Uh oh, make sure the little green light is on, would you?

6:22

On that little um light.

6:23

There you go.

6:25

Okay.

6:25

Thank you.

6:26

Uh I have a little trouble thinking and talking at the same time.

6:29

So it's that's not been my experience.

6:31

Go ahead.

6:32

And I'm gonna be really quick.

6:34

My name is Lonnie Anderson, and I'm here to encourage you to direct your city engineer's office to reset the entrance lights at both Cedar Heist and Ashwood subdivisions by agreement.

6:46

When those developments started in 1990, in 1994, the developers allowed the yard lights in both developments to replace the city street lights, normally installed by city ordinance.

7:00

Northern Electric agreed to furnish, install, operate, and maintain the yard lights, and to charge that to their homeowners with their normal monthly fees.

7:13

The city agreed to have twin entrance lights installed at both intersections in Cedar Heights in the three intersections at Ashwood.

7:23

This eliminated the need for 38 street lights in those two developments.

7:29

And in those last 34 years, this has saved the city over 150,000 because the street lighting is paid for by the residents.

7:40

This year, it saves the city $7,700.

7:46

In 2014, when the city rebuilt Roosevelt, these lights were removed and stored in Northern Electric because they were in the construction work limit area.

7:57

They could have been reset at the end of 2014 when the project was completed.

8:03

In 2015, the city awarded a street lighting project on Roosevelt.

8:09

That fall at the completion of the project, the removed entrance lights were still not reset.

8:16

I met with Larry Mettler, the electrical engineer that provided the electrical design and the construction plans for the lighting project at his office on Railroad Avenue.

8:27

I asked him why the entrance lights weren't reset in those two developments.

8:32

He said the city told me to light Roosevelt.

8:36

They didn't tell me to light the street intersections.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Procedural███████████████████████████████31%

Transportation Safety██████████████████████22%

Personnel Matters███████████████████19%

Engineering And Infrastructure████████████████16%

Snow Removal Operations███████7%

Public Safety███3%

Affordable Housing██2%

Summary of Proceedings

Aberdeen City Council Meeting - November 24, 2025

The Aberdeen City Council met on Monday, November 24, 2025, to approve routine consent items, hear public comment from a developer regarding street lighting, and address several new business items including a rezoning petition, a street name change, equipment purchases, surplus property transfer, and ratification of a labor union contract. All votes were unanimous.

Consent Calendar

Approved the agenda with corrections to two invoices: Wellmark corrected to $119,334 (from $111,000) and Trav's Outfitters corrected to $17,538 (from $171,538). Councilmember Ward moved, second by Councilmember Norstrop. Unanimous.
Approved the minutes from the November 17, 2025 meeting. Motion by Councilmember Nelson, second by Councilmember Econger. Unanimous.
Approved consent calendar items including reports, minutes, lottery notice, taxi cab license, community event permit for Aldersgate Church, retail liquor license renewal, and mobile home license renewals for Highland Trailer Court, Aberdeen Mobile Home Park, and South Roosevelt Street. Motion by Councilmember Ward, second by Councilmember Econger. Unanimous.

Public Comments & Testimony

Lonnie Anderson, civil engineer and property developer, addressed the council regarding entrance lights at Cedar Heights and Ashwood subdivisions. He requested that the city direct the city engineer's office to reset entrance lights that were removed during the 2014 Roosevelt Street reconstruction. Anderson argued that the absence of these lights creates safety hazards for drivers turning into developments, especially at night, and increases the risk of rear-end collisions. He noted that the original development agreements replaced 38 street lights with yard lights paid by homeowners, saving the city over $150,000 over 34 years ($7,700 annually). He also highlighted similar dark conditions at Prairie's Edge and called for uniformity across developments. The mayor and Councilmember Ward indicated they would inspect the sites and follow up.

Discussion Items

First Reading of Ordinance to Rezone 119 Washington Street North from C3 to R3 – City Planner Ken explained the property is a vacant nuisance residence recently purchased by a new owner planning to renovate it as a single-family home. The Planning Commission recommended approval on November 18. Councilmember Johnson moved, second by Councilmember Nelson. Unanimous roll call vote.
First Reading of Ordinance to Rename Right-of-Way from Nicholas Drive to Short Ridge Drive – Ken noted the change is housekeeping due to inconsistent naming over 20+ years of replats. Councilmember Johnson moved, second by Councilmember Ward. Unanimous roll call vote.
Approval to Purchase a Trailer-Mounted Generator from Stan Houston – City Engineer Stu explained the generator replaces a 1970s-era 250 kW unit that is no longer serviceable. The new 180 kW generator was the lowest of four quotes. Councilmember Nelson moved, second by Councilmember Econger. Unanimous roll call vote. The old generator will be surplused.
Approval to Declare Surplus Property (Emergency Light Bar) and Transfer to Rural Fire Department – Police Chief John Dahl stated the 10-year-old light bar was removed from an older patrol car and is still usable. The rural fire department will use it, saving costs. Councilmember Johnson moved, second by Councilmember Ward. Unanimous roll call vote.
Approval of Labor Union Contract (2026-2028) – City Manager Dave McNeil and City Attorney Ron presented the negotiated collective bargaining agreement covering wages and working conditions. The agreement was reached after multiple meetings with union representatives Eric Miller, Charles Akin, John Heddock, and Sean Collaran. The three-year contract aligns with the city's goal of synchronizing future union negotiations. Councilmember Ward moved, second by Councilmember Nelson. Unanimous roll call vote.
Approval of Bills – Corrected bills for Wellmark and Trav's Outfitters as noted. Councilmember Ward moved, second by Councilmember Econger. Unanimous roll call vote.
City Manager's Report – Dave McNeil reported on: Officer Michael Lucky's 10-year service award; promotions of Mark Miller to Captain and Briston Bruce to Sergeant in the Police Department; a discussion on the future of the Washington Building, with initial steps for asbestos and mold abatement via grant funding; and a call for a work session on December 8, 2025 at 4 p.m. to discuss the completed water and sewer study by Banner and Associates. He also postponed a tour of wind projects due to weather. Stu reminded the council of snow removal procedures and holiday garbage collection schedules.

Key Outcomes

All votes were unanimous. No roll call votes were recorded except for the rezone, street name change, generator purchase, surplus property transfer, labor contract, and bills, all of which passed 7-0.
The council will inspect the lighting issues raised by Lonnie Anderson and follow up.
The work session on the water and sewer study is scheduled for December 8, 2025 at 4 p.m.
The council acknowledged Boy Scouts attending the meeting.

Meeting Transcript

It's five thirty, so let's call to order this meeting for Monday, November twenty-fourth. Jordan, would you start us off with a roll call? Please respond by stating present. Councilmember Ronane Foberg. Present. Well mark will be a hundred and nineteen thousand three hundred and thirty-four dollars, not a hundred and eleven. Trav's outfitters will be seventeen thousand five hundred thirty-eight dollars and not one seventy-one five thirty-eight, just a decimal point there. Glad we're not buying two hundred thousand dollars worth of boots. Looks like that one's actually correct. Six sixty-three. That's correct. Where decimal points go. Yeah, just our excel error somewhere. Okay. So I take a motion to approve the agenda with those uh aforementioned notations on those invoices to be paid. Move to approve with those corrections. Got a motion from Councilman Ward, second from Councilman Nobstrop. Anyone have any discussion points on our evening's agenda? Okay, all in favor, please say aye. Oppose nay. Motion carries. Next we've got approval of the minutes from the previous meeting, which took place one week ago last Monday, November 17th. I take a motion to approve the minutes of our previous meeting. So move. Second. Motion Nelson, second. Econger, anyone have anything? All in favor, please say aye. Aye. We have uh speaker here tonight, Lonnie Anderson from our uh who's uh civil engineer and property developer around here in Aberdeen. Always good to see him. He sent us all some correspondence on some some lights, and we were uh working a little bit back and forth to make sure that the neighborhoods in question are well lit and safe. So Lonnie. The floor is yours. Welcome to the meeting. Glad you're here. Uh oh, make sure the little green light is on, would you? On that little um light. There you go. Okay. Thank you. Uh I have a little trouble thinking and talking at the same time. So it's that's not been my experience. Go ahead. And I'm gonna be really quick. My name is Lonnie Anderson, and I'm here to encourage you to direct your city engineer's office to reset the entrance lights at both Cedar Heist and Ashwood subdivisions by agreement. When those developments started in 1990, in 1994, the developers allowed the yard lights in both developments to replace the city street lights, normally installed by city ordinance. Northern Electric agreed to furnish, install, operate, and maintain the yard lights, and to charge that to their homeowners with their normal monthly fees. The city agreed to have twin entrance lights installed at both intersections in Cedar Heights in the three intersections at Ashwood. This eliminated the need for 38 street lights in those two developments.

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